


Until We Meet Again

by taeilloveclub



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: He runs into Johnny!, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Parisian, Romance, Taeil moves to france, it’s sad, johnil, long lost love!, photographer!johnny, sorry - Freeform, they have a beautiful day together
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-18 21:27:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18126701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/taeilloveclub/pseuds/taeilloveclub
Summary: “You were always cautious, Taeil,” he sighed “but don’t try to fight it. I’m here for tonight. I’ll regret it forever if I leave you in this cafe.”I breathed deeply. The way his skin felt on mine, the way his eyes sparkled and how he looked at me like I was the most precious thing in the world. With these feelings pouring into me, I nodded.“Okay.”





	Until We Meet Again

**Author's Note:**

> I haven’t written in so long and I was so happy to write this! I was inspired by Dodie’s song: Dear Happy and I recommend you listen to it whilst reading 💓💓💓   
> Enjoy taeilloveclub being a massive softy for Johnil!

Salty tears on hot cheeks, hasty kisses and croaky whispers of reluctant goodbyes. The buzzing of the airport around us couldn’t distract me from the way he clutched to my shirt and asked me not to leave one last time. 

That was the last time I saw Johnny Suh. That was the last time that I felt his soft hair in my trembling fingers. That was the last time I saw my entire world standing before me.

Paris was the city of love, a home away from home. Yet, even 10 years since I had left Johnny, I still felt a dull ache in my chest whenever I saw couples strolling hand in hand along the Champs-Élysées, or giggling innocently as they sipped on hot chocolates in cobble-street cafes.

I had been on dates with numerous dreamy European guys but none of them even compared to Johnny Suh. No matter where I went, thoughts of him remained abuzz in my mind. 

Neither of us wanted to break up. Honestly, I thought the heart ache would kill me before I even landed in France. We decided it was for the best, that a long- distance relationship was just too hard, what with me chasing my dreams in Paris and all. It sure as hell didn’t feel like it was for the best. Of course, the pain softened but I often found myself wondering whether I had successfully chased my dream or if it was in fact the very thing I left back in Seoul.

We agreed that goodbye was goodbye. We agreed that keeping in touch would be too unfair for both of us. That is why, to me, Johnny Suh was nothing more than a memory. That was also why I thought I was hallucinating when I saw him in the cafe just two blocks from my apartment. 

It had been 10 years. A decade. I hadn’t seen Johnny in so long, yet, he was as ethereal as ever, maybe even more so. His pink lips formed a perfect, permanent pout and his smile lines had deepened with time. His eyes, hooded and cat-like, squinted as he attempted to read a French newspaper. 

My breath hitched in my throat, my heart throbbing as I stood frozen in place. That was Johnny. MY Johnny. Sitting in MY local cafe, right across from ME.   
Somehow, despite the feeling of all the blood draining from my body I managed to choke out a breathy “Johnny?”

His head snapped up instantly. I can imagine he was shocked to hear his name in a completely foreign country. His gaze drifted across the room until he finally met mine, at which his eyes widened dramatically. He leaped out of his seat wordlessly, earning disgruntled looks from some irritable locals. 

Unlike me, who remained frozen, energy flowed out of him in a fountain. He embraced me quickly, as if he had no time to spare, and it was whole and secure. It felt like home.   
He clutched onto me just as tightly as he did the last time he saw me and, as I recovered from the shock, I reciprocated the hug. 

After perfect moments had passed, Johnny spoke. He spoke for the first time in 10 years, his hot breath tickling my neck.   
“Taeil, I missed you dearly,” 

His voice sounded strained and when I pulled away to look at him, I saw that tears brimmed his eyes like glazing. I smiled. He hadn’t forgotten me. He remembered me in the way I remembered him. He missed me in the way I missed him. 

He spoke again.   
“I thought I was nearly dead.”  
A single tear escaped his eye and he rushed to wipe it away. 

“Me too,” I breathed. That’s all I could say. 

He gestured to the small table behind him and we sat, my gaze never breaking from him. 

“Johnny, I just.. what are you doing here?” I asked, slightly more composed.

“I’m on a work trip to Venice,” he beamed “I’m working with a magazine, taking photos and stuff.”  
At this, my heart swelled. It looked like we had both achieved our dreams. Johnny has always wanted to a photographer, a successful one. 

“I’m just staying here for the day, I’ve got a plane to Italy tonight.” At this, I deflated. Tonight? Just a few hours until my Johnny was taken from me again. 

Johnny squeezed my hands that were absent-mindedly tapping on the table.   
“Moonie, let’s spend the day together. You can show me around Paris, yeah?” He said, almost pleading with me. 

“I missed you so much, let’s not waste this time we have together.” 

I swallowed dryly. I wanted nothing more than to be with Johnny today. Fuck it, I wanted to spend eternity with him. But I was scared. Scared that all the old pain would be fresh again, that the memories I had tried to muffle would be unearthed.  
My head dropped.   
“Johnny, our time’s fleeting. Is even meeting a healthy idea?” 

He squeezed my hands tighter.   
“You were always cautious, Taeil,” he sighed “but don’t try to fight it. I’m here for tonight. I’ll regret it forever if I leave you in this cafe.”   
I breathed deeply. The way his skin felt on mine, the way his eyes sparkled and how he looked at me like I was the most precious thing in the world. With these feelings pouring into me, I nodded.  
“Okay.”  
x  
x  
x  
x  
x  
x  
“Where do you like.. want to go?” I asked Johnny. We stood in the narrow street outside the cafe, my words carried away by the strong wind.

“Anywhere and everywhere,” he said dramatically, wisps of his silky black hair covering his eyes.   
I laughed. 

“One cliché adventure in Paris coming right up,” I said, gesturing to my creme moped that sat against the window of the cafe.

Johnny gasped.   
“That’s yours?” he pointed. I nodded nonchalantly. Everyone in Paris has a moped, it’s nothing out of the ordinary. 

Excitedly, he ran towards it.   
“Moon Taeil, you still continue to astound me, even after all this time.”   
x  
x  
x  
x  
He giggled in my ear in his signature Johnny fashion and his strong arms wrapped around my waist easily. I felt 17 again. Suddenly we were running through Gangnam again, rain soaking our obnoxious yellow school uniforms. We were stealing kisses behind the convenience store. We were home. 

Except we weren’t home. We were in Paris and Johnny was only here for the day. I had to remember that. 

As cobbles turned to asphalt and the roads widened, I brought the bike to a stop, parking it next to a tall gas-lit lamp.

I turned to meet Johnny’s eyes, that were round with awe.   
“That was so cool! When did you get so cool, Moonie?” he said, gasping for air even though he hadn’t exercised at all. 

I pressed my hand to my chest, as if I had been wounded.   
“What do you mean? I’ve always been cool!” 

He giggled and shook his head as he dismounted the moped, his long legs flopping off it ungracefully like a wet noodle.   
“Okay, cool guy. Where are we?” 

“Johnny, seriously. Did you go blind in these past 10 years?” I snorted as I threw my arm up in the air at the very obvious iconic structure. The Eiffel Tower loomed over us. You really couldn’t miss it. 

“Oh,” was all he said before we both keeled over in a fit of hysterics. He hadn’t changed a bit. 

“Well, what are we waiting for? I’m going to take as many pictures of you as possible. You’re Audrey Hepburn and I’m Gregory Peck.” Johnny grinned at his own cheesy reference and grabbed my hand, tugging me along. 

“Johnny, that movie was set in Rome,” I pointed out and he didn’t even look back.

“Shut up, nerd.” 

We spent longer than I had anticipated running around Champ de Mars. Johnny would bring his camera up to his eye and take photos of me looking most likely very average in a very beautiful location. Despite this, he would gasp and swoon, calling me gorgeous. 

I would blush and laugh, and he would take yet another photo. 

“Stop! You’re embarrassing me!” I pressed my hands to my cheeks that were burning hot. 

“But you’re so stunning, I can’t resist. I’m gonna need these photos to look back on when I leave.” 

My heart clenched. Right. He was leaving. I almost forgot that we weren’t going to dance and jump under the Eiffel Tower forever.

Johnny must have noticed the way my face fell because he rushed forward, moving in a big-footesqe fashion and cupped my head in his hands. 

“I’m sorry, Moonie,” he mumbled.   
“I always envied you because you were the one who got to leave but now I see that that’s the part that hurts the most.”

I nodded, watching how his features softened when he looked at me. At that, he leant down, and pressed his lips to mine so gently that it felt like I was imagining it. I almost let myself melt into him, almost. But I pulled away quickly and rubbed at my wet eyelashes.   
“Johnny... we shouldn’t,” I spat out quickly, making a hurried excuse.

His brows furrowed and his hands remained holding my upper arms.   
“Taeil, I know you’re scared. But please, don’t be wary because if we don’t have a long time we shouldn’t waste it feeling wrong.” 

For the second time that day, I breathed deeply and said   
“Okay.”   
x  
x  
x  
x  
The calm hum of the patrons in Le Café Rouge welcomed us.   
Johnny looked at home as he took in the artwork that hung on the walls and the velvet furnishings. 

“Welcome to the most Parisian restaurant in Paris,” I said, hooking onto his arm. “It’s also the most overpriced but hey, it’s my treat.” 

I led him towards a table for two in the very corner, with a view of the bustling streets below us.   
“Mon Cherie,” I pulled out his chair in a gentlemanly manner, which caused Johnny to smirk. I never acted like this, not even when we were in Seoul. 

“What’s going on?” he asked, eyes playful.   
“I’m not going to fight it,” I admitted. “You’re only here for tonight.” 

“That’s perfect,” a smile tugged on his plump lips and he leant forwards, cupping my hot cheek in his hand.   
“Then can I kiss you, Taeil?”   
I nodded, as his eyes fluttered shut, the golden hour sun glowing on his skin. “Please, do.” 

This time, I allowed myself to melt. I made sure to remember how his lips felt and the way he rubbed a gentle circle on my cheek with his thumb. I didn’t have long left with Johnny, the sun was setting after all. But I was determined that however long we had left would make up for the ten years we had lost. 

We giggled tipsily over champagne and let one another into our lives again. I told him about Monsier Bonn, my grumpy neighbour. I cringed as I retold my disasterous first day at work and showed him pictures of my cat. In turn, he excitedly explained how well his career was going and showed me some of his recent work. He told me how things are different at home, that Seoul misses its Moon. 

As the sun set on Paris and rows of lamps instead illuminated the street, our time left together slowly dwindled.   
“Johnny,” I almost whispered, his name tasted sweet on my lips. “I never stopped loving you. I never stopped missing you. You’re a part of me.”

He hummed in response.   
“Life isn’t as bright without my moon,” 

I loved when he called me that, because if I was the moon then Johnny was my Sun. Without him, I had no light and I was just lost in orbit. 

Then, he looked down at his watch and stood reluctantly.   
“I have to go, now.”   
x  
x  
x  
x  
We both stood on the pavement, neither of us wanted to say the word. The dreaded goodbye that we knew would come eventually. 

“Come to Venice with me, we don’t have to say goodbye now,” Johnny proposed, tripping up over his words. 

I winced, I didn’t want to reject his offer but I knew I had to.   
“Johnny, no. My entire life is here. I can’t just up and leave.” I knew that he understood but his eyes still pleaded with me.   
“This isn’t the end.” I insisted, struggling to hold back the tears that threatened to spill. 

“You and I,” Johnny said shakily at he wrapped his arms around me, “we’re meant to be. The universe will always bring us together.” 

I was crying now, for real. My eyelashes were weighed down with hot tears as I whimpered in the arms of my love. I must have looked really pathetic but Johnny didn’t seem to mind

 

Then, he pressed a firm kiss to my exposed forehead, a silent promise that he would love me forever. 

Wordlessly, he hailed a cab, and let go of me, my body instantly feeling cold without his presence. 

I looked up as he began to step away, as we separated all over again. 

“I’ll be waiting for you,” I said, my voice shaking as my fingernails dug painfully into my palms. 

Johnny, with trembling lips, waved an unwilling goodbye.   
“Of course, my moon. Until we meet again.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Follow me on twitter @/moonstrony and tell me how much I suck 💓💓💓


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